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Japan's Nikkei index slipped 0.7 percent, closing at 10,371. Aiful Corp. led declines, plummeting 27 percent for the day. Shares in Aiful, the country's third-largest consumer lender, plunged after the company announced it was seeking to reschedule debt payments. The company's woes may have deepened as a result of new regulations put in place by the Japanese government, which include caps limiting the interest rates lenders can charge and also require lenders to repay borrowers who had been charged too much interest.

Japanese real estate stocks were among the worst-performing sectors after the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism reported that the country's average land price fell 4.4 percent last year. Mitsui Fudosan Co. Ltd., Japan's leading property developer, lost 2.3 percent and Mitsubishi Estate Co. Ltd. slid 2.3 percent. Building-related stocks also fell, with Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co. Ltd. diving 9.6 percent and Japan Steel Work falling 3.1 percent. These stocks won't have a chance to bounce back until the Japanese stock market reopens on September 24, after the Japanese holiday celebrating the autumnal equinox and Respect-for-the-Aged Day.

Only a few Hong Kong-listed property companies saw gains today. Poly Hong Kong Investment Ltd. soared 15 percent after China Investment Corp. committed to purchasing HK$409 million ($53 million) of new shares, according to Bloomberg. And Shimao Property Holdings Ltd. was also up 1.9 percent. Both companies are involved in developing land in Mainland China, a market with extraordinary long-term potential.